Five Startup Tips from Seismic Games Co-Founder and CEO Greg Borrud

Prepare to eat, sleep and drink your business.

That's just one of the many recommendations from Greg Borrud, co-founder of Pandemic Studios and the co-founder and CEO of Seismic Games. Borrud, whose own startup

in Series A funding, provided Benzinga with five tips for aspiring entrepreneurs.

“You are going to eat, sleep, drink your business,” Borrud insisted, “so if you are not completely passionate – don't bother.”

Borrud said that you must have a clear vision “for what you want to build and where you want to go in the next five years.” “It should be unique and ownable,” he said.

You can't design, produce or sell a random product or service without taking on some serious risk. Thus, Borrud recommends that you test your ideas on people that you respect. “And don't be afraid to adapt your thinking,” he said. “Stand by your ideas, but also be open minded enough to know when and how it can be improved.”

Borrud couldn't stress this point strongly enough. “We were constantly hearing from people that we would probably always need more than our original estimate,” he said. “We thought we would initially raise $750k. We ended up raising $2m and we're very thankful that we did.”

“This should probably be #1 on the list,” Borrud insists. “You are only as good as your team. You need to have a leadership team underneath the founders that you can trust and that are truly top notch. Only hire the best and if someone is not working out – do not hesitate to let them go. It is painful but you don't have time to try to make it work out. The best employees are inspired by other great employees and any weak links can bring down the whole organization.”